Making the journey over to Europe is a big event. Flying from the US can cost a lot of money, and it can take at least seven or eight hours to get there. But once there, you will want to make the most of your time. The great thing about Europe is that a lot of the countries are quite small and they are close knit so you can easily fit in visiting a few destinations during your trip. One of the best ways to see a few countries is to plan a road trip. You can visit the places that you want to, travel through gorgeous routes and countryside and have a blast. Here are some tips to help you plan your next road trip in Europe.

Grenache Day Celebration is September 18th (Photo credit: Grenache Assn)

What are you going to do for #GrenacheDay on Friday, September 18, 2015? I had no clue about it but hey, who doesn't want to be part of the real-time revelry as Grenache goes global! This year will be the Sixth Annual International #GrenacheDay, a worldwide celebration for the most widely planted red grape in the world.

Wine lovers across the world celebrate with global tastings, parties, winery events, social media postings, photobombs, inspired menus, and tweets. Fans of the most voluptuous of grapes join with restaurants, nightclubs, merchants and wineries to celebrate their favorite Grenache wines at home or away, the third Friday of every September.

My last day here was more focussed on spending a day in the city so I chose to head to the Anne Frank museum - a must see/must do in Amsterdam. Reading about her on the internet and in books does not compare to what you see and learn here. A quick stop at Pancakes Amsterdam for some refueling and I checked out the Houseboat museum as well as flower market before trying some frites - the famed eat as you walk packet of potato fries that you see most people in the Netherlands chomping on as they head form point A to point B. I liked my fries and wish I had known earlier to come try a few different types of sauces.

Majority of the day was spent at the zoo. Totally forgot but Sunday was really not very wise of me to choose for my 'how do you do' with the animals. Managed to finally make it out of there past afternoon for a visit to the Tropen museum, Jewish museum, Botanical garden and Rembrandthuis. The first two are well worth the money and time. If I had more time to spare I would have loved to spend more time at the Tropen museum and the Jewish museum. Lots to learn and many firsts involved. Rembrandt's house was more of a let me check that off the list. Much of the house is maintained and some artifacts are preserved but unless your are a die-hard fan much of it won't matter to ya. Walking along the canals and Dam Square though is something else if you do not live in a city as vibrant as Amsterdam.

A visit to Zaanse Schans was totally not on my radar but once in Amsterdam and aware of its existence, I felt I should not pass on this opportunity. It is a day trip but can be completed quicker if you are lacking time. I took a bus from Centraal that dropped me right off at the entrance of the museum. This is a working community dating back to the 18th and 19th century so you can expect to see a lot of green land, grazing animals, windmills, barns, clog shoe factories and cheese factories as well. Walk around the quaint village and check out some of their really cute cottage homes and boutiques. If you are looking for souvenirs then this place probably has the best selection as far as I could tell during my short stay. A leisurely stroll around the entire area can take a half day, longer if you decide to dine there. I walked around most of the gardens and boutiques, checked out the museum space as well as the cookie factory, and also the clog shoe factory and cheese factory. Cheese tasting is fantastic here as are the pickles and few other products. I was tempted to buy half of what was on display but unfortunately knew I did not have place in my bags for that much cheese. I took a bus back to the city when I was done. There are buses by the half hour I believe. Either ways, it wasn't a long wait before I could catch one back to the hotel I was staying at.